PhD student profile - Julia Cons
Thesis title: Power, public participation and legitimacy in an NHS integrated care board
Research summary
Julia's doctoral research examines patient and public involvement (PPI) in NHS decision-making within an Integrated Care Board (ICB). As ICBs are responsible for decisions about local health services, the study explores how patients and the public are involved, whose perspectives are considered, and the extent to which this involvement influences outcomes that matter to local communities.
Focusing on one ICB, the research investigates how PPI is intended to function, what it aims to achieve, and how it operates in practice. It examines the factors that enable or constrain collaboration between the ICB and local people, as well as how organisational priorities, resource pressures, and varying understandings of PPI shape its implementation.
Rather than assuming that involvement automatically improves services or decision-making, the study critically explores the gap between intention and practice. It considers whether PPI meaningfully influences decisions, the extent to which it may fall short of organisational aspirations, how patients and the public experience it, and the possible reasons underpinning these outcomes.
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